(January 12, 2025) Devangi Nishar Parekh has lived like a monk in a Shaolin Temple in China, camped in Antarctica for seven nights and made her way from Vienna to Istanbul in cars and trains, without taking flights. The more she sets out on these adventures, the more she is able to expand her mind, enabling the entrepreneur get better at her business and personal life. “In China, I trained like a warrior in Kung-Fu as well, which was a transformative experience. In Antarctica, where I camped with 40 people, we built our own tents, cooked our food (on ice!) and slept on the glaciers,” smiles Devangi, the Managing Director of Aza Fashions, India’s premier multi-designer luxury clothing and lifestyle brand, in a chat with Global Indian. The year 2024 went exceptionally well for Devangi as she launched three new Aza stores, including a flagship store in Ahmedabad and Surat, and another one in New Delhi. “We also conducted several trunk shows in key markets across the US and Dubai,” she says. Devangi also elevated her app dramatically, making it much more engaging through features like video shopping, image search, and AI driven recommendations. View this post on Instagram A post shared by
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The Azafashions journey
Devangi founded Azafashions.com (Aza’s global e-commerce platform) in 2015 to offer clients the convenience of shopping the best of Indian and contemporary fashion from anywhere in the world. The Aza website and app retail curated collections by over 1000 Indian designers caters to clients in 75+ countries worldwide.
Growing up in the US, she saw first-hand the importance that traditional clothing played in making the Indian community feel connected to their roots, and each other.
“Being so far away from home, we used to celebrate every Indian festival possible, and watch every Bollywood movie, which we used as a reference for fashion trends. That’s when I realized that there’s a genuine need for access to good quality ethnic wear for NRIs living abroad,” recalls Devangi. Before starting Azafashions.com, Devangi felt the products available locally were out-dated in terms of style, overpriced and of low quality.
The omnichannel strategy
That became the genesis of her idea to launch a web platform which would ship India’s beautiful fashion and craftsmanship globally. While she was in the US, her mother Dr Alka Nishar launched Aza stores in India. Devangi took off from there. “Today, 50% of our revenue comes from our e-commerce platform, and 70% of that is international revenue, including markets like the US.” The company has ensured seamless logistics internationally by setting up its own warehouse in the US.
Now, Azafashions.com’s market doesn’t just comprise the diaspora, but also non-Indians attending big fat global Indian weddings and celebrating events like Diwali. Aza has a team of stylists on call who help customers plan and select the right outfits for their occasion as per their body type, budget, and timeline.
[caption id="attachment_62994" align="aligncenter" width="583"] Devangi with her mother, Dr Alka Parekh[/caption]
Devangi’s expertise spans omni-channel retail (a business strategy that integrates online and in-store shopping to create a consistent customer experience), e-commerce strategy, business development, merchandise planning, marketing and social media.
While launching the e-commerce business, Devangi faced resistance to listing catalogues online because many designers were hesitant to showcase their products online, fearing copying and doubting whether people would spend so much without physically seeing the products. “This changed dramatically over time, and our sales served as enough proof of concept,” says Devangi, who plans to continue strategic omni-channel expansion to new markets both through physical stores and the Aza app.
From Mumbai to the US
Born in Mumbai, Devangi was an extremely curious child, asking questions about everything, which inevitably got her into trouble at school. “The Indian education system was strict, and most of my teachers kicked me out of class for asking too many questions,” recalls Devangi, who lived in Mumbai till she turned nine.
She didn’t perform well academically till the 4th grade. As a result, she was labelled “sporty” rather than smart.
US education
However, everything changed when the family moved to the US in 1997. While it was a difficult and emotional transition in terms of leaving everything familiar behind, the experience proved transformative for her academically.
“My teachers in the US encouraged curiosity and gave me ample opportunities to research everything I wanted to know, through reading, experiments, Science league, Math league and inquiry based learning,” says Devangi. She threw herself into extracurricular activities and pleasantly surprised herself and her family by becoming a straight-A student during her first year at her new school.
This transformation left an indelible mark on her. “I realized that every individual learns differently, and finding the right teaching style can make all the difference between cultivating a leader or a child with low self-esteem,” she says.
The Ivy League experience
Devangi graduated from The Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania with an MBA. It turned out to be a great experience. The MBA programme was a melting point for a group of interesting and dynamic people with fascinating journeys, making for a massive exchange of ideas.
“The program really expands your mind and enables you to think differently,” says Devangi. It was during a leadership venture at the Wharton School that Devangi got the unique opportunity to camp in Antarctica for seven nights.
Another fantastic experience while at Wharton was modelled after The Amazing Race. “In teams, we made our way from Vienna to Istanbul without taking any flights, accumulating points in each location along the way while completing different tasks. It was a highly immersive way to learn about different cultures.”
One of her favourite memories at Wharton was leading the Wharton Charity Fashion Show, where they had Wharton students walking the runway for several international designers, with the proceeds all going towards charity. “My apartment was flooded with clothing and it was a lot to organize, but I learned a tremendous amount from the experience,” smiles Devangi, who is also on the board of Entrepreneur’s Organization in Kolkata.
While at Wharton, her summer internship was with award-winning international designer Joseph Altuzarra. Devangi also did an exchange at Bocconi University in Milan, where she did a project for Moschino. “Both experiences gave me great insight and perspective into how the business side of a design house works.”
[caption id="attachment_62995" align="aligncenter" width="443"] Devangi Nishar Parekh[/caption]
A time of deep exploration at Cornell
Devangi Parekh also has a Bachelor of Science degree from Cornell University, where she graduated cum laude with a double major in Applied Economics & Management and Communication.
Cornell was a time of deep exploration and learning for her. “At Cornell, I delved into a variety of different subjects and internships, which helped me gain clarity around what I wanted to pursue,” recalls Devangi, who did two internships in investment banking with DSP Merrill Lynch and Citi respectively, as well as a highly engaging summer internship with the Future Ideas division of Future Group, where she got exposure to retail strategy.
While at Cornell, she was very active in various extracurricular activities, including two competitive dance teams and Cornell Entrepreneurship Organization.
Stint at Deloitte
As an analyst in the Strategy and Operations group at Deloitte Consulting, Devangi got a great exposure to structured thinking, data analysis, and teamwork. “It was right after the 2008 financial crisis, and I was lucky to have worked on projects in the financial industry which gave me strong exposure to understanding cost management and post-merger integration at a granular level,” she says.
However, Devangi Parekh knew by this point that she wanted to be in the retail space, because she was spending all her free time researching retail and e-commerce companies and reading about their journeys.
“I had also lived away from India for almost 14 years and wanted to come back to be closer to my parents while working,” says the entrepreneur.
Work and Family
A majority of Devangi’s time gets divided between work and family. She has two children aged five and two. “When I’m not working, I’m with them. I travel a fair amount for work, so I try and maximize family time,” says Devangi.
For her, dance and spirituality have been two life-long passions. “I’m a trained dancer in various forms, and I used to be on two competitive dance teams in college,” informs Devangi, who is currently learning aerial arts, which she finds challenging and liberating at the same time. And despite her busy schedule, she takes time out every day to meditate.
Brand India
Devangi is a big proponent of the Make in India movement and believes that the country is in a golden era. “There is tremendous potential for growth and new opportunities for anyone who wants to contribute to the mission,” says Devangi, a member of Young FICCI Ladies Organisation (YFLO) and a frequent speaker at business conferences and events such as TiEcon.
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